Inadequate Weight Gain in Overweight Moms Tied to SGA

(HealthDay News) — For overweight and obese women, inadequate weight gain is associated with increased risk of small for gestational age (SGA), according to a study published in the August issue of the America Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology.

Patrick M. Catalano, MD, from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, and colleagues examined the correlation between inadequate gestational weight gain and fetal growth in overweight and obese women. In the prospective study, 1,053 women gained >5kg and 188 lost weight or gained ≤5kg. Anthropometry measures were used to assess birth weight, fat mass, and lean mass.

The researchers found that weight loss or gain of ≤5kg or less correlated with SGA (9.6 vs. 4.9%; adjusted odds ratio, 2.6; P=0.003). Neonates of women who lost weight or gained ≤5kg had significantly lower birth weight, fat mass, and lean mass (all P<0.0001), and they also had smaller length, percent fat mass, and head circumference. Neonates of women who gained ≤5kg had significantly lower birth weight, lean body mass, fat mass, percent fat mass, head circumference, and length, after adjustment for diabetes status, prepregnancy body mass index, smoking, parity, study site, gestational age, and sex. Neonatal outcomes did not differ significantly for those who lost weight and those who gained ≤5kg.

"In overweight and obese women, weight loss or gain ≤5kg is associated with increased risk of SGA and decreased neonatal fat mass, lean mass, and head circumference," the authors write.